This blog is written by a former Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) Employee of the Year who worked in, managed and trained CRA's Collections Department staff for almost 11-years. inTAXicating provides information, support and solutions for everything CRA related, including but not limited to; Collections, Enforcement, Audits, Liens, Back-Filing, Assessments, Director's Liability, s160 Assessments, Taxpayer Relief, Voluntary Disclosure, Bankruptcies, Proposals, Mortgages and diagnosing and solving the most complex of tax problems. Contact us for a free consultation! Should you need to hire us, you will find us to be Experienced, Honest and On Your Side. Email us at info@intaxicating.ca, and let's begin solving your tax problems together!

Tag: insolvency

Warren Orlans, the Director of inTAXicating Tax Services has completed his Profitable Giving Specialist accreditation which certifies that he is able to demonstrate understanding and proficiency in each of the following 4 areas;

The Tax Shelter Industry in Canada

The Regulations: Promoter Liability and Penalties, Third Party, and Civil Liability

Registered Profitable Gifting Arrangements and the Law

The Role of the Canada Revenue Agency in Regulating RPGAs

In addition to assisting Canadian Taxpayers who have fallen victim to Tax Shelter scams like the Global Learning and Gifting Initiative (GLGI), the Canadian Organization for International Philanthropy (COIP), the Relief Lending Group (RLG), Mission Life Financial Inc (MLF), Pharma Gifts International (PGI) and Integrated Receivables Management Inc / Integrated RM Inc (IRM).

inTAXicating provides Canada’s only full tax solution to assist Canadians solve all of their tax problems, including ones brought on by participating in tax shelters.

Below is only a snapshot of how to view a CRA debt related to a Tax Shelter / Gifting Arrangement and some of the options to start resolving the issue(s).

In order to reach a solution for Canadian Taxpayers the following things must be considered;

Ability to Pay according to you and,

Ability to Pay according to the CRA.

From there, you have only a few options;

Do nothing

Resolve the balance outstanding

Fight the CRA

Should you choose to resolve the balance outstanding, you again have only a few options;

Pay the balance in full

Ask the CRA for a payment arrangement, and prove you need one

Wait for the CRA to take it from you.

File a Consumer Proposal

File for Bankruptcy.

Keep in mind that the CRA does not “settle” debts like the IRS does. The only way to “settle” or pay less than the full amount of tax, penalties and interest, is through bankruptcy or a proposal.

While all of the Collections matters are in process, you are entitled to file for Taxpayer Relief and ask the CRA to return some or all of the penalties and / or interest which it has charged you. This application should be devoted time and effort to complete. It should never be a cookie-cutter application written by someone else because the CRA sees those and mass-denies them. Anyone trying to sell you a cookie-cutter application knows this and is “helping” you for the money and not because it’s the right thing to do.

Taxpayer Relief does not hold back Collections for doing what Collections does – trying to collect a balance owing – nor do CRA Collections care that a Taxpayer Relief application has been submitted.

A CRA review of a Taxpayer Relief Application can take upwards of a year. Be prepared for that delay and the interest that accumulates on your tax account should you wait to pay it later.

Having a trained set of eyes look over and edit a Taxpayer Relief application is a great idea because if you’re taking the time to submit an application, you want to make sure that you are putting your best work forward.

But ultimately, when looking at your options… All of your options, you want to make sure that your interests are being looked after first. You need an expert in CRA Collections, in Tax Shelters, and who can assist you with accounting, refinancing, insolvency and proposals and who can give you the best advice, the most cost effective advice and the advice that they would take if they were in your shoes.

inTAXicating Tax Services is that organization and we’re here to help you with all of that, and so much more. We associate ourselves with like-minded professionals who also understand that you are the client and that you need assistance and service.

If you have any questions about any tax shelter that you may have been involved in, and you need to know your specific options, contact us at info@intaxicating.ca

In my experiences which includes almost 11-years working in the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA), you should never allow the CRA to decide whether you can fix your tax problems or whether you should go bankrupt.

From the stand-point of a CRA Collections officer, going bankrupt is great because it removes the account from their inventory of accounts to collect / resolve.

Your file disappears from their inventory and re-appears in the CRA’s Insolvency Unit inventory.

From the perspective of the Collections Department, it’s case closed!

There are 3 ways a CRA Collections Office resolves one of their accounts;

1) Collect it / fix the compliance issue(s)

2) Write it off because they cannot collect it

3) Move the account to the Insolvency unit

Go Bankrupt!

The CRA’s Collections Officers are not allowed to tell you to go bankrupt. In fact, they are taught in their training that they are not allowed to do that, and that sentiment is reinforced at all future training they attend. As someone who trained CRA Collections staff for 5-years, I can confirm this fact.

Collections staff are not allowed to even suggest that you go bankrupt. They might confirm it, but that’s all they can do.

What CRA Collections can do, however, when they feel you are insolvent, is to force you into bankruptcy via their collection actions, which include but are not limited to;

Bank garnishment

Wage garnishment

Lien on a property

Enhanced garnishment to accounts receivables (in the case of a business)

All the while, why applying these garnishments, the CRA refuses to release the hold on the accounts.

They freeze every source of income that you might have and you are faced with the decision to come up with the funds to pay them, or file for a proposal or an assignment in bankruptcy.

In some cases, a bankruptcy is unavoidable and the right solution, but not in every case, which is why I strongly recommend speaking to someone who is looking after your interests first and foremost.

There are tax-related companies who are fronts for insolvency firms, so they might appear to want to help you, but they want you to file for bankruptcy, and there are other tax-service firms which gather your information and they unable or unwilling to help you, pass you along to a trustee.

You don’t want or need either of those.

You need a tax firm which has the experience in CRA’s collections, and who have the relationships with not only Insolvency firms, but mortgage brokers, reputable accountants and investment professionals so that you’re options are laid out for you to decide the best option.

Not the CRA.

In order to resolve your tax issues you need to disclose the details so your options can be determined, and you need your tax help to do the same.

Ask your tax-help the following questions;

Are you committed to finding me a tax-solution first.

If that solution is not going to be accepted by the CRA, what other options do you feel would work.

Don’t be weary if a firm wants to charge you a small fee to diagnose and plan out your solution.

You should be weary if they want to charge you a significant amount of money to diagnose it and not give you a plan. If they want to keep the plan a secret, and not educate you along the way, it’s because there is no plan.

Likely their solution it to drag you along the process knowing that the CRA will come along and lower the boom and then suggest to you that your only option is to conveniently have them file bankruptcy for you.

Don’t ask the CRA if you should go bankrupt. You might not like the answer.

If you owe money to the CRA and you’re not sure if the debt is a tax matter which can be resolved, or if bankruptcy or a proposal are better options, just ask! Send an email to info@intaxicating.ca and let’s talk! We’re here for you.

Most people are familiar with the concept of bankruptcy. Creditors are owed money, assets are liquidated and the liquidation proceeds are paid to creditors. The process is usually very difficult for the person filing bankruptcy as his/her assets may consist of a family home or a cottage, which possibly has been in the family for generations. The disruption can be devastating for the family and their children.

The Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act (BIA), the federal statute that governs bankruptcy and restructuring in Canada, provides an option other than bankruptcy.

The BIA allows an insolvent person whose aggregate debts are less than $250,000 (not including mortgages on residential property) to file what is known as a “consumer proposal”. A consumer proposal is not the same as bankruptcy, even though they are both governed by the same laws.

A consumer proposal is a formal settlement between a debtor and his/her creditors of all unsecured debts for an agreed upon amount. The settlement does not have to be for the full amount of all debts but can be for a fraction of the total owed. The debtor makes one monthly payment to the administrator of the proposal, who in turn makes dividend payments to the creditors.

More specifically, a person who is unable to meet their monthly debt payments meets with a qualified professional, who administers consumer proposals, and they discuss the ability of the debtor to make monthly payments. Together, they review the monthly income and expense statement of the debtor, as well as his/her net worth, to determine how much the debtor is able to pay each month. Once a monthly amount is determined the administrator notifies the creditors and helps to finalize a settlement agreement between the debtor and the creditors. Fifty percent (in dollar value) of the creditors must vote to accept the proposal for it to become binding on all.

The main difference between a consumer proposal and a bankruptcy is that in the case of the proposal the debtor’s assets are not liquidated. The debtor receives the same protection from creditors and collectors but retains control of his/her assets. The two obvious benefits are that there is no loss of assets and no family disruption.

One might ask “Well why don’t I just call all my creditors and work out my own settlement?” This will not necessarily work because, for example, if you have five creditors and you are able to settle with only
three of them, the remaining two are not forced to settle. They can still pursue you for the amounts they are owed. In a consumer proposal, all creditors are dealt with together and receive the same payment plan. As consumer proposals are governed by federal law, any settlement is enforced by the courts and creditors are required to accept the settlement in full and final satisfaction of all debts. So the debtor gets to keep his/her assets, he makes monthly payments to satisfy all debts over time and the creditors receive payments, which are greater than what they would have received if the debtor had filed bankruptcy.

Consumer proposals comprise an increasingly large percentage of overall personal insolvency filings in Canada. For records ending November 30, 2010, 31% of all consumer insolvencies in Canada were
consumer proposals. This is up dramatically from ten years ago when the majority filed for bankruptcy, having had no knowledge of the alternative.

In today’s economic environment, it’s important that people know what options they have to deal with debt. Canada’s insolvency laws mean that today, “Proposals are not just for marriage anymore”.

TODD HOWELL
Todd Howell is a licensed Trustee in bankruptcy and has over 13 years of experience in the bankruptcy and insolvency field. Todd is also a certified Insolvency Counsellor and a member of the Canadian
Association of Insolvency and Restructuring Professionals.

This article was originally published in Crowe Soberman’s quarterly business newsletter – Comments and is intended for clients of the firm. inTAXicating has been granted permission to repost this article solely for informative purposes. Should you require any assistance, we encourage you to contact the author(s) toll free at 1.877.929.2501, or in the GTA at 416.929.2500.

More articles can be found here; http://www.crowehorwath.net/SOBERMAN/services/advisory/Personal_Insolvency/Personal_Insolvency.aspx

When the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) registers a lien against your home, they are securing their interest by attaching the repayment of their debt to your property.

The CRA considers a lien to be enforcement action and this tool is commonly applied where there are properties in the name of a taxpayer who has a tax debt. Collection officers at the CRA should be registering liens, or securing the Crown’s interest, much more frequently then they currently are, and it should be done whenever there is a tax debt of a considerable amount owing.

Below are some answers to common questions about CRA property liens to help you understand what to do, and where to turn for help.

1. How to tell if there is a lien registered against your property

A title search on your property will reveal the existence of a lien.

It is CRA policy that they advise you by letter when a Certificate has been registered in Federal Court which identifies the property in question and the balance owing for which they are preparing to register a lien. This does not mean that a lien has been registered, but this is essentially a warning of impending action.

If, however, the CRA does not have your correct address you will not receive any notices and thus may only discover there’s a lien when you try to sell or refinance your property. A title search reveals the existence of liens.

2. When the CRA registers a Certificate do they always then register a lien?

Not necessarily. The CRA could be using the Certificate in several ways, including; to secure their interest in the property to make sure that before the tax debtors interest in the property is liquidated, the tax debt is paid in full, or in order to get the attention of the property owner so they will begin negotiations with the CRA, or they may have the intention of proceeding with the seizure and sale of the property in order to pay off all or part of a tax liability.

3. Will the CRA take my house and leave me homeless?

It is CRA policy to not seize and sell a property when it would result in the property owner having nowhere to live. If this property is an income property or cottage or secondary place to live, then the CRA will likely proceed to realize on the property and pay off their debts.

4. Have I lost title to my home?

No.A lien is a registration on the title of that property which prevents you from selling or refinancing that property until either the tax debt owing is paid in full, or there is a written arrangement to have the proceeds from a sale or refinancing directed to the CRA for full payment of the debt.

5. What is a Writ of Fi Fa / Writ of Seizure and Sale?

If a Certificate has been registered in the Federal Court and the tax balance still exists, the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) will register a Writ of Fi Fa (abbreviation of “fieri facias” which is Latin and means “that you cause to be made”). It is a writ of execution obtained in legal action which is addressed to the sheriff and commands him to, in this case, seize and sell, the property of the person against whom the judgement has been obtained.

This is a very serious enforcement action and after your property is sold, you are entitled to any proceeds left over after the tax arrears have been paid in full.

6. What are my options now that a Certificate has been registered and a lien applied to the property?

Even though the CRA has an interest in the property, you can still access the equity and use that equity to make arrangements with the CRA – or the Department of Justice – to refinance the property or even sell it with the understanding that this can only be done in conjunction with the CRA receiving full payment of their tax debt.

7. What is the CRA’s priority regarding my property should I decide to sell it?

Assuming your mortgage is a traditional mortgage through a recognized financial institution, the proceeds from a sale should fall in this order (depending on the type of tax(es) owing);

1. Financial institution holding the mortgage

2. Secured lenders

3. Canada Revenue Agency

4. Other creditors who have registrations against the property

5. Property owner.

So if you have other debts including a tax liability (and the two tend to go hand-in-hand), then it is possible in this scenario to have nothing left over by the time the property is sold and all debtors are paid off.

8. What if I owe CRA more than there they get from the sale of my property?

If, after the sale of your property there are still taxes owing to the CRA, them your tax balance is reduced by the amount the CRA is paid and the remainder is still owing to the CRA.

9. What if I am not the only one on title – ie/ jointly with a spouse?

In the case where there are more than one person on title in addition to you, it’s important to keep in mind that the CRA can only realize proceeds from your share of the equity in the property. So if you sell, re-finance or are forced to sell, only your share of the equity can be paid out the CRA. The CRA cannot seize your spouses’, or anyone else’s equity.

Keep in mind that in order to get the Certificate, the CRA has to reconcile the account, determine the share owned by the tax debtor and then use that figure when sending the Sheriff out to seize and sell the property.

10. The CRA has registered a lien against my property. Can I sell my interest to someone else and get removed off title?

If a tax debtor initiates a transaction which puts an asset out of reach of the Canada Revenue Agency not at Fair Market Value, the CRA has the ability to initiate a section 160 Non-Arms Length assessment and assess the person(s) who received the asset for your liability (minus consideration received).

11. Will bankruptcy free me of a lien?

Filing for bankruptcy, or filing a consumer proposal, does not discharge a lien against your property. If you go bankrupt on your CRA debt, the lien remains and – even worse – accrues interest over time. Even after your discharge from bankruptcy, the lien remains in force, until you eventually sell your home and the CRA’s priority is now second in line after the bank.

If after all that the tax debt is still remaining, then and only then because of the bankruptcy, will the tax debt no longer be owing.

Who Can Help?

The bottom line here is that tax liens can cause serious problems and it’s best to seek our help to resolve your tax issues before it gets that far. Even if a lien is in place in order to secure the Crown’s interest, it’s best not to ignore the CRA.

We have handled hundreds of liens, and will find the best solution for you. I might be re-financing your mortgage, paying out the lien, or temporarily lifting the lien in order to improve your arrangement with the CRA. Whatever the problem, no matter how complex, we’ve helped.

About inTAXicating

This is the blog for inTAXicating.ca

inTAXicating was created by Warren Orlans, a Canadian Tax Consultant and former Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) Employee of the Year who worked in the CRA for almost 11-years in their Collections Department.

inTAXicating provides expertise in the area of Tax Liability Solutions and assisting Canadians to understand how the CRA operates.

In order to provide you with the best Tax Solution services possible, we work with Mortgage Brokers. Tax Lawyers, Accountants, Bookkeepers and Insolvency Practitioners to ensure that you get the best experience during a difficult time as you fix your tax problems.